While many seniors are abused by their own family members, a growing number are facing abuse in nursing homes. There are several types of abuse, but the most harmful ones are physical abuse and neglect. These types of abuse can lead to serious injuries and even death.

Physical abuse can include beating, shoving, hitting, slapping, punching, kicking and use of restraints. These actions can lead to broken bones, head trauma, dislocations, internal bleeding and lacerations, all which can lead to death if not treated.

Neglect is also common in nursing homes. This includes malnutrition, dehydration, unsanitary living conditions, bedsores and dangerous living conditions. If a staff member doesn’t give residents required medications or mistreats a person in any way, this is also considered neglect. All of these can and have led to the wrongful death of nursing home residents.

NURSING HOME ABUSE IN MINNESOTA

Nursing home abuse has become commonplace in every state in the nation, including Minnesota. In 2016, the Minnesota Department of Health received 25,226 complaints of elder abuse in nursing homes throughout the state. The complaints included physical abuse, serious injuries and neglect. More than 4,000 of these incidents involved altercations between residents, while more than 2,000 involved physical abuse by staff members. Of these, only 3 percent were investigated. This means that an overwhelming majority were ignored by the state.

On the occasions that the Minnesota Department of Health did investigate the cases, key steps were not taken. In many cases, the victim was not interviewed and police were not called.

The abuse is horrific. Residents are being punched, choked, fondled, smothered with pillows and forcibly restrained. This is horrible news for the 85,000 Minnesotans who live in state-licensed homes for seniors

Many people are forgoing traditional nursing homes and placing their loved ones in assisted-living centers. This is causing abuse to become more commonplace. The residents in assisted-living facilities are generally sicker and older. They tend to have more mental problems as well, which makes them more vulnerable to criminal abuse. On top of that, these facilities do not have as many restrictions, which means that they can understaff the facility and get away with abuse.

When nursing home abuse or neglect does occur, family members are kept in the dark. They are not made aware of abuse until their loved one is seriously injured or dies from abuse or neglect.

WHAT CAUSES NURSING HOME DEATHS?

A nursing home staff member may accidentally or intentionally cause harm to a patient. In many cases, understaffing and negligent hiring cause deaths to patients. Nursing homes often hire minimal staff in order to save money. One person may be in charge of a dozen or more patients. This can lead to extreme stress. The employee may get confused or distracted and forget to feed a patient or give medications.

Negligent hiring is a common factor in nursing home abuse situations. Nursing homes experience high levels of staff turnover. Sometimes they hire staff without doing background checks. Many of these staff members have criminal backgrounds or are sex offenders. They may hire people who are not licensed and have no experience working with seniors. These new hires then mistreat the patients. They may have trouble controlling their anger and they lash out at the patients. They abuse these patients to the point where they suffer serious injuries or even death.

RECOVERING COMPENSATION

If your loved one has died due to nursing home abuse or neglect, don’t try to handle such a case on your own. Nursing home abuse claims are complex, and it’s important to have a competent personal injury lawyer on your side.

Your lawyer can assess your case and bring about a wrongful death lawsuit. A wrongful death lawsuit must incorporate four elements:

Negligence. It must be proven that the loved one’s death was caused by negligence or reckless behavior.

Breach of duty. The nursing home staff member owed the resident the duty to provide high-quality medical care, and the staff member breached that duty.

Causation. The breach of duty directly caused the loved one to die.

Damages. The death led to damages, such as medical expenses and funeral and burial costs.

You may be wondering how much compensation you could receive from a wrongful death claim. Honestly, there is no clear-cut answer. Each case is different. The circumstances are never the same, and neither are the injuries or damages involved.

While no amount of money can bring your deceased loved one back to life, it helps you pay for expenses caused by your loved one’s death. In some cases, you may be able to sue for punitive damages, which serve to punish the wrongdoer.

CONTACT A MINNESOTA NURSING HOME ABUSE ATTORNEY TODAY

We expect our loved ones to receive the best care possible in a nursing home. We don’t expect our family members to die in a nursing home. If they do, you can’t sit and do nothing. You must take legal action to hold staff liable for their actions.

If your loved one has died at the hands of nursing home staff, the Minnesota nursing home abuse attorneys at the Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm LLC can help. We will assess your case and help you receive the compensation you deserve for your loved one’s death. Contact us at (763) 225-2319 today or fill out our online form to schedule a free consultation and learn more.

BLOGS ABOUT DEATHS IN NURSING HOMES

A new article from the Star Tribune shows that the Golden Nest assisted-living of Minneapolis neglected a resident causing her death. According to the Article: Golden Nest assisted-living “failed to properly assess the client’s needs, failed to properly secure an exterior door lock, and [a] staff member failed to properly secure…

On the front page of today’s Star Tribune, investigative reporter Chris Serres questions the effectiveness of the Minnesota Department of Health’s commitment to protecting residents of Minnesota nursing homes. This is an issue that the Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm has been adamantly pursuing for years. The Star Tribune article, entitled “Minnesota health…

This past Monday morning, Joel Smith was in court in Austin, Minnesota, pursuing a punitive damages claim against the St. Mark’s Lutheran Home nursing home. The case involves an overdose of Fentanyl (a potent narcotic). The nurse who caused the overdose testified that she had not been trained or supervised…

Mark Kosieradzki and Joel Smith have reached a successful settlement of a significant wrongful death action against a St. Paul assisted living facility, Cerenity Residence on Humboldt. On a frozen November morning, a visitor looked outside through a second-floor window and saw a woman’s body lying on the facility’s back…

As reported in today’s Star Tribune, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has reversed its earlier decision regarding the death of resident at the Minnesota Veterans Home-Minneapolis nursing home. The MDH originally determined that the Minnesota Veterans Home-Minneapolis did not neglect the resident. As the Star Tribune reports, “Reversing a previous conclusion,…

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has completed its investigation of neglect concerns at the Mahnomen Health Center nursing home in Mahnomen, Minnesota. A complaint was filed with the Department alleging that a resident was neglected when a staff member administered a dose of morphine that was ten times what…

The front-page feature article in today’s issue of Minnesota Lawyer reports on a civil rights wrongful death action that the Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm has brought against Ramsey County. The Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm is honored to represent the family of Theresa “Toots” Rotter in their mission to hold the…

Yesterday we reported on a law suit filed by the Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm against the Ramsey County Care Center for the wrongful death of Theresa “Toots” Rotter. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE BROADCAST REPORT. Last night, Fox 9 News led its 10:00 pm broadcast featuring the law suit and Mark…

The Kosieradzki Smith Law Firm is honored to represent the family of Theresa “Toots” Rotter in their mission to hold the Ramsey County Care Center accountable for the wrongful death of their loved one. Ms. Rotter died while in the care of the county-owned Maplewood nursing home. The law suit includes legal claims that the county…